The One Where They Need to Share a Bed
by Madame Baggio
Summary: Susan and Éomer are travelling together. Susan thinks he doesn't like her. The car breaks. There's one hotel, with one room, with one bed. You know what happens next.


**Notes: Hey, guys! Just a very simple, crazy one-shot. I decided to go as crazy as possible for this one, so I picked a crossover pairing, threw them in an alternative universe and used one of my favorite tropes ever. The idea was actually to do a few of those with other crackships, but I'm not making any promises. So let's say this is a unique moment.**

 **I give you: Susan Pevensie and Éomer sharing a bed and feelings ;)**

* * *

Susan wanted one thing to be very clear: she did not dislike Éomer Éadig. At all. He was a quiet man and she knew how to appreciate the silence; he was a focused man and she respected that; he was a fair man and she valued that in people.

Maybe she didn't talk to him all that much, but it was as much as his fault as it was hers. She might not make an effort to talk to him, but he sure as hell didn't go out of his way to talk to her.

She did not dislike him! She didn't! Obviously, that didn't mean she liked him -she didn't! -but it truly annoyed her when her brother Edmund talked about Éomer with care, like he was worried the mere name would set Susan off.

Like he was doing right now.

"I know you might feel uncomfortable…"

"Edmund, for the millionth time…" She said through gritted teeth. "I don't mind going with Éomer."

"You two don't get along." Edmund put in, like it was a well-known fact.

Susan groaned in frustration. "I have nothing against him. I don't know where you all get this idea from."

Edmund gave her a flat look. "You two hardly ever talk; and when you do it's painful to watch."

Susan pressed her lips together, refusing to comment on that. Mostly because it was the truth.

However, in her defense, this was actually his fault! She'd tried talking to him, in the beginning. When Edmund started dating Éowyn, Susan loved the other woman almost immediately. Éowyn had a way of seeing life and facing her problems that Susan thought beautiful. She was also sincere and straightforward in a way Susan believed to be refreshing.

So, obviously, when Edmund and Éowyn decided to introduce their families to each other, Susan was not only willing, but eager to make Éomer's acquaintance. Éowyn adored the man, and even Edmund -grumpy, wary Edmund -liked him. He had to be someone amazing.

He might be, but Susan could never find out, because he wouldn't talk to her!

That first day, despite her many tries, the only thing she managed to get out of him were grunts and monosyllabic answers. She got the message and she didn't try to be friendly anymore.

"We can survive a few hours inside a car." Susan assured her brother.

Edmund looked doubtful, but -thankfully -he didn't press the issue.

That was how Susan saw herself, the following afternoon, sharing a painfully awkward and silent ride with Éomer.

Edmund and Éowyn wanted to get married at Meduseld, the family's ranch. Susan was helping Éowyn organize the wedding, since she had more free time and actually enjoyed those things. So she was going earlier with Éomer, so they could open the house, and receive the things as they started arriving for the ceremony in three days.

He'd picked her up punctually at 5 pm; they had the mandatory small talk about the weather -it was a lovely spring -about their jobs -all fine, thank you for asking -their siblings -everybody is fine -, and had spent the next twenty minutes in absolute silence.

Susan felt like screaming.

When they were reaching the 45 minute mark on their trip, Éomer finally said something. "Do you mind if I put some music?"

"Not at all." Susan replied politely.

He pressed something on his phone and Johnny Cash's voice filled the car. He liked country music… Susan shouldn't have been surprised, it… suited him.

She tried to watch him inconspicuously, as he drove on. Now that there was music playing he seemed more relaxed, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel along with the song.

Susan still marveled at how attractive he was. She used to like the clean cut, suited type, but there was something about Éomer that was raw and real and… Earthy. He was grounded like few people she knew, and that was just one of the things she admired on him.

She had said it before: she didn't dislike Éomer. She wished they could actually hold a conversation, because there was a lot she wanted to ask him. However, at this point, even her pride was getting in the way. Why should she keep trying to talk to him, when he clearly made no effort himself?

But she still found him unfairly good-looking. From his longish blonde hair, to his intense hazel eyes, to his strong arms… The man was dangerous.

But she was way too old to have a crush on anyone.

At the 1:30 hour-mark, some bored deity decided to play with Susan's life and the car broke. It was the most ridiculous thing; there was a large thumping sound, smoke and then nothing else. It was so out of nowhere, that both of them sat there in complete silence for a whole minute, no reaction whatsoever.

"What the fuck?" Éomer cursed suddenly, making Susan startle. Then he cleared his throat. "I'm sorry. You don't like cursing."

How did he know that? "I think the situation warrants it." She sighed.

Éomer gave her a doubtful look, like he wasn't sure if she was being sarcastic or not. He cleared his throat. "I'll see if I can figure out what happened."

Susan just nodded, but he was already out of the car, and opening the hood. Immediately more smoke came out, and as Éomer coughed, Susan knew this wasn't going to be an easy fix.

XxX

They had to wait 30 minutes for the tow-truck to show up. The man took one look at it and said he couldn't have it ready that same day, only in the morning.

Éomer sighed. "Is there a city nearby?"

"Closest thing is more of a village, but they have a B&B." The man answered, scratching his belly.

That was how they ended on the tackiest B&B Susan had ever seen. The owner was also something else. "Oh I've never seen a more handsome couple! Look at you two, clearly made for each other."

Susan would normally be mortified by this kind of thing, but she was too distracted by all the pink the woman - "Call me Maggie!" -was wearing. It was a lot of pink. A lot.

"You're so lucky!" She gushed away. "We only have one room left."

That, Susan heard. "One?"

"We're having this lovely cheese festival in here, and people came from all over to see it." Maggie explained, obviously missing the expressions on their faces. "Honestly, you're very lucky we had a last-minute cancelling."

Susan and Éomer traded looks. This was the only B&B around, and they'd gotten a ride to it. They were stuck there.

"We'll take it." Éomer finally said, making Susan give him a look.

They got the key and walked to their room. The pink monstrosity was… Overwhelming, for one. And there was no couch, only one big bed.

Susan groaned and looked up to the ceiling. "This is the worst fanfiction of myself I've ever seen!"

Éomer snorted. "I'll ask Maggie for a cot or something."

"I don't think you'll find one." She grumbled. "Do you mind if I grab a shower?"

"I'll step outside and make a few calls." was his only reply, before leaving to do exactly that.

Susan sighed once again -it seemed like one of those days, perfect for sighing -and put her bag on the bed. She took a quick shower, then went out to look for Éomer.

He was standing on the porch of the B&B, his eyes on the starry sky above, hands on the pockets of his jeans.

"Hey." Susan called softly as she approached him. It somehow felt wrong to interfere like she was doing.

"Hey." He gave her a small smile, barely there. "I called Éowyn, to let her know what happened. And I also called Meduseld's keeper and told them to wait us tomorrow morning."

"Ok." She cleared her throat, a bit out of balance by the way he was looking at her. His eyes were tracing the lines on her face.

He seemed to notice what he was doing and looked away. "And there's no extra cot."

"Of course there isn't." Susan snorted.

"However, there is a cheese festival happening and we do need to eat, so…" He looked back at her. "What do you think?"

Was he really asking her to have dinner together? Yeah, sure, they were stuck there together, and they had to eat, but… This seemed different somehow.

"Sounds good." She replied softly.

"Let's go." He nodded his head towards the street and took his hands out of his pocket.

Susan followed him as they walked the charming little streets until they found the cheese festival. It was pretty small compared to things one would see in big touristic cities, but it had a charming side to it, with the friendly vendors and families all around.

They walked for a while, checking the stands and the products. When the crowd became thicker, Éomer put his hand on the small of Susan's back to guide her.

There was something strange going on, but… She wasn't complaining. It was just… She was always so sure Éomer didn't think very highly of her -or at all, to be honest -and now he was being a perfect gentleman, taking her for dinner and refusing to let her pay the bill, even when she threatened to stomp on his foot with her high heels.

And they'd talked! The whole time, they held an actual conversation, where he told her about his childhood, about Meduseld and things about Éowyn. He also listened as she talked about growing up with three siblings, about her work and her passions.

It was like she'd just met his nice twin. Or at least, she'd finally met the Éomer that Éowyn adored and Edmund respected. It was jarring.

So when they finished dinner and went back to the B&B -shoulders brushing as they walked side by side - Susan was a tiny bit confused. The butterflies on her stomach weren't helping at all.

Éomer said he'd like to shower, so Susan decided to hang out in the lobby for a while. She felt a bit silly sitting there, paging through old magazines, but she'd feel even more awkward if she waited in the room.

When a good 30 minutes had passed, she finally went back to the room. She found Éomer going through his bag. His hair was wet, and he was wearing pajamas pants and a T-shirt on top of it; something told Susan the T-shirt was for her benefit.

"I will…" She cleared her throat. "Use the bathroom." She indicated the bathroom's door and Éomer just nodded to her.

Susan felt like an idiot for announcing it, like she needed his permission to do it. She grabbed her bag and locked herself in the bathroom, muttering to herself the whole time.

Then, she realized something.

"Oh, for pity's sake." She groaned, pulling out her nightgown out of her bag. "It's not funny anymore." She grumbled to the universe.

Of course, she had a nightgown in her bag. It wasn't a sexy bright red silky one, but it was still a nightgown. It was a peach color, it went to her knees and had a modest neckline, but… It was still a nightgown.

Seriously, how was this her life?

Feeling suddenly rebellious, she pulled an old T-shirt she'd brought along to wear while she was dealing with the wedding organization and put on top of the nightgown. The result was strange, but she felt marginally better.

When she came out of the bathroom, Éomer took a look at her, pressed his lips together and didn't comment -but she was pretty sure he was trying not to laugh.

She kneeled on the bed and looked him straight in the eye. "Listen up. We can share the bed as the mature adults that we are."

"Ok…"

"But this is not going to be one of those silly romantic comedy's moment where suddenly, for no reason at all, in the middle of the night, we magically cuddle, and wake up all tangled up to confess our deep feelings for each other." She spoke very seriously. "Understood?"

Éomer's face was getting red from his efforts not to laugh, and his shoulders were shaking already. Susan sighed. "Are you done?"

"I am sorry." He took a deep breath. "We can do this your way." He agreed easily.

"Great."

That was how they ended laying on bed, with a good space between them, and backs turned to each other.

XxX

Logically, because the world hated Susan, that was not how they woke up.

Susan wished to say that she woke up with Éomer wrapped around her like a vine, so she could carry on pretending she had nothing to do with this whole thing, but… She was tangled on him.

And when she said 'tangled', she meant _tangled_.

He still had his back to her, so she was the big spoon. Yes, she had cuddled him in the middle of the night. Her nose was pressed against his neck, she was hugging him, her hand under his T-shirt -Lord from above, that man was fit - leg thrown over his hip. And the only participation he was having in all of this, was the hand on her thigh, the one she'd thrown over him, so truly, this was all her fault.

Why her?

She groaned and felt Éomer's body vibrating with his chuckles. "Not a word." She grumbled.

"Not one." He promised.

Susan sighed in relief.

She closed her eyes, trying to relax again. It took her awhile to notice that something was… Different. She just couldn't figure out what it was.

Probably because the way Éomer was rubbing circles on her thigh was very distracting…

Wait. What?

Oh yes… She was still clinging to him. _What was wrong with her?_

She pulled her hand from under his T-shirt and cleared her throat. "I'm sorry." She murmured as she -reluctantly -pulled back.

He chuckled again, and let go of her leg so she could pull it back, then threw her a look over his shoulder. "I don't mind."

She arched an eyebrow at him. "You don't?"

He turned, so he was lying on his back. "Can't say I do." He replied easily, his smile almost splitting his face.

It occurred to Susan that she might want to move about now. She was still lying on her side, but as Éomer had moved to lay on his back she remained quiet firmly pressed against him. Actually… She felt the change in position had made her even more so. Honestly, it would take very little effort on her part to drape herself over him.

Not that she wanted to. Much.

"So… We did it your way." He indicated, the smile on his face unbearably smug. "And that's the result."

Now she was decidedly wary. "Yes. And what would your way be?"

Éomer moved way too fast for someone who'd just woken up; in a second, Susan was flat on her back and he was hovering on top of her.

"My way…" He started conversationally, like he wasn't _on top_ of her. "Would be the over the top, cheesy romantic comedy one. The one where none of us was wearing these stupid T-shirts, and in the middle of the night we'd magically cuddle, wake up nicely tangled and confess our deep feelings for each other."

Susan was left speechless. Was he really…? Did he just say he…?

"I…" She cleared her throat. "I think your way has its merits." She finally said.

"I thought you might."

"So… What comes first?" She asked. "No shirts or deep feelings?"

"No shirts." He informed her.

"You first."

He grinned, then moved away just enough to pull his T-shirt off and throw it very far away.

Now _that_ was a nice chest.

And, technically, it was her turn loose the T-shirt, but she just couldn't help it; she pulled him down and kissed him.

Yup. His way was better.

If Éomer was offended by the fact she was still wearing a shirt, he made no comment. In fact, he dove into the kiss quite happily. She thrilled at the feeling of his beard against her skin, and his lips against hers. It was so much better than she'd imagined -and now she felt okay admitting she had, in fact, imagined it.

Éomer had this way about him, this confidence, a way of taking control without looking like he was trying to take over a person. Susan could admit she was a control freak, and that people that tried to steamroll over her always regretted it quickly, but it wasn't what he was doing. This sureness of his just made her feel truly desired; he wasn't trying to 'put her in her place', he was savoring her.

His hands slid up her legs, causing shivers on her; they took her nightgown along for the ride, until it was bunched around her waist.

"Up." He murmured against her lips.

She sat up, somewhat dazed by his kisses, her arms automatically going up. She only realized Éomer had taken her nightgown and shirt in one move when she felt the chill.

"Smooth." She commented.

"I aim to please." He replied cheekily.

"Then come here." She spoke, hand curving on his nape, already bringing him in. He chuckled against her lips, and then moaned when she bit his.

Susan was no blushing maiden, but the way he touched her everywhere -her legs, breasts, between her thighs -mad her gasp and squirm, and beg for more; and Éomer gave it to her, because he was as giving in bed as he was everywhere else.

She was starting to think she wouldn't come out of this sane.

The minutes seemed to drag by as she tried to recover her focus on the world.

"I think I'm dead." She murmured breathless.

Éomer let out a startled laugh. "I hope you're not. We still have feelings to discuss."

She turned to look at him, head on her pillow, suddenly feeling vulnerable. "Yes, we do."

Éomer copied her position and gave her a kind smile. "This might sound a bit like we're back on 8th grade, but I like you, Susan. A lot."

"You do?" She couldn't hide the surprise in her voice.

Éomer groaned and hid his head on the pillow.

"Sorry, I didn't get that last part." She teased lightly.

He groaned one more time, before rolling back to his previous position. "I said 'Éowyn was right, I'm an idiot'." He told her morosely.

"Éowyn?" How had her future sister-in-law ended in this conversation?

"She told me I was acting like a grumpy arse and scaring you away." He confessed. "She knew I liked you even before I admitted it to myself."

"I never thought that." Susan declared, completely baffled at this point. "I thought you found me annoying."

"I didn't." He was fast to say. "It's very difficult for me to say what I'm feeling. I tend to clam up and look like someone pissed on my beer, at least according to Éothain." He winced. "Sorry for the word."

Susan snorted. "I'm not the snotty flower you seem to think I am." She indicated. "And you did look serious all the times we met. And you hardly ever talked to me."

"I know." He looked chagrined. "I was scared to death of talking to you."

"What? Why?"

"Because you're a brilliant, sophisticated woman and I am… Me." He finished lamely.

Susan sighed. "I'm not that amazing, or that scary, Éomer." She told him gently. "I have a lot of flaws -I've been told I'm a know it all."

"I know you're not perfect." He informed her. "But you're still that amazing to me."

She pressed her lips together, trying to contain a smile. "So… You have feelings."

"I do." He grinned. "How about you?"

"I have some of those too." She played purposefully cool, she knew she wasn't fooling him. "Just a few, mind you…"

"Right…" He drawled. "Just a few."

"Mostly related to your chest." She insisted.

Éomer snorted. "I guess I deserve that, after all…"

Susan gently pushed him, until he was flat on his back, then leaned over him. "I wanted to meet you just for the things Éowyn said about you; you sounded like the greatest man out there. And even though you wouldn't talk properly to me, I still think she was right. So I have a bunch of feelings to."

His smile was blinding. "I'm happy to hear it, and I really want to apologize…"

"I rather you make it up to me." She cut him.

"Deal."

They arrived very late at Meduseld, but they didn't care at all. Neither did Éowyn and Edmund, for that matter.

* * *

 **Notes: Short and sweet and filled with cliches! Just the way I love it.**

 **I hope you enjoyed it!**


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